All posts by peter

saturday 30th oct – recap and feedback

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so, after a lot of gentle coaxing we finally managed to get more people to join the fast group.  after a disatourous split the previous week, we managed to get people back into main 2.  the result??? main 1 was actually quite small this week.

the transitional ride also split, with the majority heading to trans 1 and only 5 doing trans 2.  so was that the distance change???  does the split transitional group need to be doing the same distance to make it effective???  do people think that they are getting hard done by doing a shorter distance and feel that they need to do the full 40km to make it worthwhile???

these are all questions i am asking, not having a go at anyone.  over the last few weeks we have tried a number of different things with varying success.  i need feedback as to what we need to do next.  the aim of the game is to make sure that everyone has a positive riding experience.  that doesn’t necessarily mean an easy ride, as even a hard ride can be positive.

so, fast, main1 and main 2 seem to be organised for now.  transitional 1 & 2 need to let me know what they want.  the development group is a bit sporatic as are the juniors. 

i think the juniors took off well for a while but now the regular riders realise that they have to give up their own ride to look after the kids.  unless we get a qualified coach, that is pretty much the way we will need to run things.

so, let me know what you are happy with and what you think needs to change.  the groups will only get bigger as the weather improves, so we need to get it set up now before it is too late.  add to the comments below.

ride routes 30th & 31st oct

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so after a week of hot days, it finally rains for the thursday morning ride.  only 2 of us turned up but blair opted for mount st repeats, while i set off on a lap of the river.  stupid headwinds and then a torrential downpour that pretty much soaked me to the core made for an interesting ride.  however, i wasn’t the only one out there, but i was probably the youngest.  all the battle weary older gentlemen were out riding in the rain as if weather conditions didn’t really matter anymore.  reports are that it may have been our last lot of rain for a while and already the prediction is for 35 deg next wednesday.  time to hang up the arm warmers and slop on the sunscreen.

cwa agm –if you are a member, you will have already received an invite to the cycling wa agm.  this is open to all members and will give you an insight into how political the whole club thing can be.  during the actual agm, only club reps can vote, but there is a members forum afterwards were you can raise any issues.

memberships – the online system is up and running again and there has already been a good flow of new members coming in.  if you are already a member of another club and wish to join us for 2011, then you will need to fill in a transfer form before you renew your licence.  this can be found here and needs to be signed by both the old and new clubs.

ride routes –  further to the post during the week, another comment has been on the starting time.  as we are spending so much time trying to get the groups organised, we are starting later and later.  from now on, i will not be doing a morning spiel unless there is something critical to report on.  instead i will put any important info into this blog post.  this week sees the official formation of transitional 2 group which will do a slightly shorter route than t1.  main 2 is back again this week and if main 1 is too big, it will be arbitrarily split.  more groups means more leaders.  thanks to leon and jordan for volunteering this week, but we need more to step up before is start putting forward names from the membership list.  each week, volunteer yourself via the comments under the ride routes.  you will not have to do it often and newer riders will benefit from your experience.

saturday 30th october – all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

juniors – spr saturday 22.11km juniors (mt pleasant)

development group – spr saturday 35.48km (novice shelley)

transitional 1 – spr saturday 42.94km (freo & cott)

transitional 2 – spr saturday 36.05km (leach & shelley)

fast, main 1 & 2 – spr saturday 50.98km (benara rd)

sunday 31st october – all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

short – spr sunday 70.93km (kahuna)

long – spr sunday 87.72km (kahuna & peet & patterson)

saturday ride groups

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how do you solve a problem like the main group???  well really the question is, what is the problem with the saturday ride at the moment.  the answer is pretty simple – we are getting too big.  gone are the days of when we first started spr and there were about 30 people turning up and i knew all their names.  don’t get me wrong, i love the fact that we have so many people wanting to ride with us, it’s just that we need to start changing the way we do things to accommodate them all.

i tried to solve 2 problems last week.  both the main group and the transitional groups have been getting too big so we needed to split them both.  by all accounts, the splitting of the transitional group worked well, but even then we had issues working out who went in which group.  however, the reduction in group size and a different course for the T2 group made it more enjoyable for all involved.

splitting of the main group was totally arbitrary.  i saw the size and split it down the middle.  the reason for this was that the previous week there were 5 riders in main 2 and about 50 in main 1.  i thought that the small amount of riders from main2 scattered across the group would be looked after by the rest of the group.  unfortunately both groups splintered quite a lot down towards jandakot.  a few people struggled with the wind and small rises and fell off the pace.  in the group i was in, a number of the stronger riders fell back to help out, but the group was still in about three pieces.

so, what we are going to do is re-establish the main 2 group.  there are a number of riders that definitely benefit from the easier pace and more control over the group.  things like regroup points help keep it together and make the ride more enjoyable.  so, who should go in this group???  well if you were on the ride last week and were off the back of either main group then you should consider riding main 2.  russell will look after the group and set the pace so that it stays together well.  the ride route will be the same as the main group, but starting a bit behind so that it can pick up any dropped riders.

now the main group itself should not really exceed 25 riders.  this allows a decent roll through to happen but also is big enough for riders to hide in if they can’t do any turns.  it is also small enough to not get caught at every set of lights.  so, we will look at the size of the main group after we take out main 2 riders and just split it in half if we need to.  make sure you are standing next to your friends before we start.

something else that helps the main group numbers is the size of the fast group.  the last couple of weeks has had fewer riders in the fast group as people were saving their legs for sunday racing.  hopefully this shouldn’t be the problem for a few weeks and we can get this group back up to a decent level.  the more we have in the fast group, the easier it is to hide in the pack and not get dropped.

so, this coming saturday we should have the following:

fast group – high 30’s, no regroups, self managed. group size – 25.

main group – mid 30’s, self managed by experienced riders to ease the pace if needed, same route as fast group, roll throughs and sprints, split into 2 groups if needed.  group size – 25.

main 2 – low 30’s, ride leader present, regroups at certain points, same route as above.  group size – 15.

transitional 1 – 30ish, ride leaders present, slightly shorter route, learn to roll through, regroups and slower sections.  group size – 15.

transitional 2 – high 20’s, ride leaders present, slightly shorter route, learn group riding skills, group should always stay together.  group size – 10.

development group – mid 20’s, ride leader present, shorter, safer course.  learn where to position your bike in a group and how to roll through.  group size – 7.

juniors – must ride with a family member.  set course mostly on bike paths. 

i have been sent a number of suggestions to how we need to run the group and some i have implemented in this blog.  if you have any others, add to the comments so we can get some feedback on how you would like the saturdays to be run.

ride routes 23rd & 24th oct

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this has been the longest week of my life and it still hasn’t finished.  still managing to slip a few rides in, but i have no idea how.  work is just insane at the moment and it doesn’t look like it will ease up.  christmas is just 9 weeks away so next thing you know you will be worrying about what to buy me.  anyway, that is easy.  get yourself an spr membership and that will make me happy.  if you do get one now, it covers you for the whole of next year as well.  awesome value as you effectively get 14 months worth.  for a recreational licence at $86, that equates to $1.43 per week.  not bad considering this will allow you to get any of the member benefits that we have available.

golden spokes – registration is still open till midnight tonight.  there are 3 grades of racing and 4 distances of a participation event.  all you need is a recreational licence and you can get a day licence to race.  the participation events only need a rec licence.  there is also a teams participation event where you get to “race” cyclo-style against other teams.  spr will be hosting this event so there will be stacks of our members down there.  if you haven’t signed up yet, then this is a good opportunity to have a go.

ride routes – we have a couple of issues that need addressing in both the main and transitional groups.  basically they are both getting too large to handle.  the main group last week was massive as there were only 5 people in main 2.  with the team time trial on as well, there were less people riding in the fast group and this bolstered the main group as well.  now the transitional group is also suffering from too many riders.  the pack was split last week, but the main problem with the transitional group is the spread of abilities makes it hard to keep everyone together.  the way that the novice and transitional groups should work is that riders need to progress through into the faster groups.  the transitional group should not be getting any faster as these people should be moving into main 2.  with only 5 riders in main 2, the pace was not on and any of the faster transitional riders would have been capable of holding on.

so what are we going to do???

the ideal size group for the main group is 25 riders.  this is big enough to roll through, and big enough to let you hide if you are suffering, and small enough to not get continually split at the lights.  for the transitional group, the ideal size is about 12.  as these riders are learning about group riding, a bigger group can be a bit daunting.  so, what we need to do before the ride starts is break into groups in the car park.  this will take a bit of organising, so please bear with us while we get it sorted and listen to instructions.  it is not the intention to split the main group into abilities, but rather have the stronger riders look after the weaker ones.  think of this as a slightly bigger cyclo-sportif.  the transitional group will need to split based on ability and we will look into having a trans 1 and trans 2 group.

here is our ride etiquette guide.  you all should be familiar with it BEFORE you come out with us.  this includes riders that have been in the group a long time.  the first points are important in the way that we operate our training rides and how people should behave.  your safety and the safety of the people riding with you should be your first priority.

saturday 23rd october – all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

juniors – spr saturday 22.11km juniors (mt pleasant)

development group – spr saturday 35.48km (novice shelley)

transitional – spr saturday 41.73km (canning vale reverse)

fast, main 1 & 2 – spr saturday 51.36km (sth lake)

sunday 24th october – all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

short – spr sunday 61.14km (welshpool & weir rd)

long – spr sunday 90.23km (welshpool & observatory & kalamunda rd)

state team time trial – spr racepack

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Got to look good for the camera, boys.

attached is the racepack for the state team time trial this weekend.

if you need an spr jersey, please add to the comments with your size and we will see what we can do.

we will have a small tent down there and the usual support facilities.

if you are not racing, feel free to come down to support the spr riders and maybe take some pictures.

race pack can be found here.

sunday 10th oct – longish hills ride

30 degrees saturday and quite a big turnout.  fast forward 24 hrs,  add in a couple of rain showers and the numbers certainly diminish.  in fact, when i turned up to the start, i couldn’t see anyone.  mainly because they were all hiding from the rain that had just pelted down.  i was caught in it so i was pretty much saturated by the time i arrived, but luckily it wasn’t cold.  there were only four of us at the start.

so we gathered together and decided that we would forgo the planned route and just stay close to kalamunda.  this way if the rain didn’t clear, we could make an early exit.  luckily we had decided to head out douglas ave, which was the same was as planned, as we picked up mark waiting under a shop awning. 

so there we were, the furious five.  jamie, mark dc, ndcc nick, danny boi and myself (i’ll let the boys all decide which character they are).  it didn’t really rain again, just sprinkled a bit, so it wasn’t too unpleasant.  we had decided to do welshpool first then maybe a few of the other closer hills.  on the way out i pointed out that we would all be getting points today as there were only five of us out. 

as usual, the climb started innocently enough but it was soon clear that nick and danny were going to be climbing better.  jamie held on with them for quite a while and basically stayed in contact for most of the climb.  mark and myself were off the back but were keeping the others in sight.  mark managed to claw back on to my wheel a few times, but lack of riding recently took its toll by the time we past the servo.  as we passed lesmurdie road and the hill kicks up again, i saw up ahead that nick had kicked and dropped danny.  jamie was still trailing not far behind and i seemed to be getting my second wind.  i knew that there were two more pinches to this hill so tried to measure my effort to be able to drag them back in.  the road heads downward momentarily before kicking back up for the final crest.  i put it in the big ring and, using the momentum from the downhill, sprinted up the last climb.  i managed to pass jamie, but danny saw me at the last moment and put in two or three hard pedal strokes to stay 2 bikes ahead of me by the time we crossed the line.

welshpool – ndcc nick, danny boi, peter, jamie, mark dc

a quick regroup and we headed towards pickering brook.  we were going to do the easy side of the observatory along patterson.  the climb started well enough, with no attacks coming in the first section.  the pace stepped up a bit towards the top and jamie and mark were discarded from the rest of us.  just before the last pinch to the top, nick attacked and got away.  it was funny as i was just thinking that if i was fit, this would be where i would go.  danny took off after him, but didn’t really put a dent in nicks advantage, just managed to keep away from me.  that is how it finished on the line.

observatory – ndcc nick, danny boi, peter, mark dc, jamie

our next climb was to be the camel farm, but since no-one in the group had done it before, we decided to just ride it rather than race it.  this made the pace a lot nicer, even though it didn’t stop us hitting the early slopes at a decent pace.  it was the turn into fern road and the subsequent roads that people were confused about, so we regrouped and took it easy through there till we came out at the camel farm. 

we then headed back down mundaring weir road towards kalamunda.  the pace on the final climb was not that fast, but i was just running out of legs by that stage.  we formed into a couple of little groups; danny and nick, mark and myself and jamie off the back.  it seemed that jamie had burnt all his matches early trying to stay with the front boys on welshpool.  a teacher at my high school (not that is going back over 20 yrs) had a sign in his office.  it said “old age and treachery will overcome youth and skill.”  i have been riding for longer that jamie has been alive, so my old legs just seem to remember what to do. 

nick pulled away from danny before the false flat and mark and i worked together to try to gain ground.  once on the flat, i went to the front and started to time trial along, just like the good old days when i used to bring the tt bike into the hills.  the aim was to slingshot mark into the last part of the climb so that he could catch danny.  unfortunately it didn’t go to plan, as mark ran out of legs just before the last hill.  i had burnt mine out by then so just worked my way to the top.  mark was far enough in front by then to stay ahead till the end.

wier rd – ndcc nick, danny boi, mark dc, peter, jamie

so, it was actually a really nice ride.  yes, it had rained, but it wasn’t cold at all.  service at the coffee shop was good as the rain had kept many away, so all up a good ride for all of us.  remember, don’t check the weather report to see if you are riding, check the weather report to see what you will be wearing while riding.

ride routes 16th & 17th october

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wow, i can’t think of any social commentary to add here.  i have been flat out at work lately (and those that know me will understand that this is not normal) and so haven’t really had time to think.  i could talk about the weather…but we all know that summer is coming.  oh, i am glad that daylight savings isn’t on.  it was almost light when we start the week-day rides now.  i hate being kept in the dark all year round.  another few weeks and you won’t even need your lights at all.

state team time trial –we have 5 spr teams entered and some of the girls are spr riders too.  the course is dead flat but prone to a bit of wind.  will post the race pack soon.

golden spokes – there is a post here.  add your name to the comments if you are planning on racing so we can get an idea of how many people we have attending.

spr memberships – the online facility is back up and running, however, there is an error in the cost of the recreational licence.  actually it is too cheap ($77 instead of $86).  although it seems like you will get a discount if you join up before they rectify the problem, you will actually be short changing the club as the missing amount it part of the club fee.  all the racing licences are the correct amounts so if you need a licence to race the golden spokes then you should be right to get one.

ride routes – after only a few showed up to ride in the rain last sunday, i have planned the same routes this week.  the 5 of us that tackled the hills did a different route that kept it close to kalamunda.  make sure you check the map closely as many of the regulars will be racing in pinjarra at the state team time trial.

saturday 16th october – all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

juniors – spr saturday 22.11km juniors (mt pleasant)

development group – spr saturday 35.48km (novice shelley)

transitional – spr saturday 40.86km (rebold hill)

fast, main 1 & 2 – spr saturday 48.74km (ridge hill rd)

sunday 17th october – all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

short – spr sunday 70.93km (kahuna)

long – spr sunday 101.29km (roleystone & observatory)

saturday 9th oct. main 1

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quite a warm morning and therefore a good turnout in total numbers.  juniors have dropped off a bit after the initial surge and rob and his daughter headed off alone.  as mark mentioned previously, the few novices joined up with a few of the transitional group to form a new category, yet to be named.  a complete reluctance for anyone to head out with the fast group meant that we almost didn’t have one this week.  like lemmings though, once a couple headed out, the rest soon followed.

i was riding with main 1 this week after a week off the bike on holiday.  my first ride back was the thursday fast ride and i was dropped pretty early so i knew the saturday fast group would not be a goer for me. 

it was a decent size pack and we rolled out just behind the transitional group.  this was not intentional but meant that we had an easy couple of km’s and a chance for a good chat.  the transitional group peeled off to cross the causeway as we continued on to ascot.  no real issues besides a couple of splits at the lights and i was enjoying talking to people rather than having to concentrate on sucking in air.

pretty soon we were at the turn to cresswell hill.  some had not done it before and it looms ahead of the group as the road to the top is dead straight.  as usual the hill spread the group out well, with some riders taking it easy and others racing to the top.  i was taking it easy and came up almost dead last.  dr carl was so intent on beating davina to the top that he almost ended up under a car at the roundabout. 

a quick regroup and we were off again.  down to royal so that we can get across wanaroo road easier, then all the way to main st.  we eventually got onto the road which circumnavigates herdsman lake.  after a quick stop at the lights the pace was on and we began to get strung out.  a roll through started but it was not really that efficient as some people struggled with the pace.  a few gaps formed and soon there were only a few doing work at the front.  luckily for some, the lights put an end to the “fun”.  as we took off again there was the unmistakable hiss off a tyre losing air rapidly.  luke pulled over to the side to find that his front tyre now sported some type of growth where bits were bulging through.  davina stopped with him and waved us all on again.

the pace soon picked up again but this time instead of a consistent roll through, it was all out attacks.  we were getting closer to the end of the lake road so people knew that there was going to be a rest coming up.  i came around the front pack and took off up the road.  as i was passing, i knew that i would grab someone and when i finally looked back it was ainsey.  we had a gap and ainsey came around me for his turn.  i held the wheel as long as i could, but ti didn’t turn out to be very long.  i had burnt all my matches in the first effort.  as the group caught me, it was clear to see that most of them had used up pretty much all their energy too.

another regroup and we toddled on towards shenton park.  the pace was easy and everyone was anticipation the homeward run through dalkeith.  the pace picked up again but was defiantly more restrained than herdsman.  the rises in dalkeith strung the group out a bit, but i would say that the majority of the group were together once we hit mounts bay road.

once we were on the final stretch, there seemed a reluctance to do the work on the front.  i began to come around the group just as someone started a roll through.  by the time i got to the front, there were no more riders coming through.  fine, i thought, all good time trial efforts for next week’s team time trial.  jen eventually came around but then i got in front of him again as no-one else was playing.  as we approached the swan brewery, my resolve was starting to wane and my legs were beginning to protest.  i look back and saw a train coming up the right side and soon most of the group had rolled me.  i sat up with the final few riders and cruised into the coffee shop.  not sure who won the sprint, i was too far back to see.

ride routes 9th & 10th october

16 Comments
Cadel Evans (Australia)

31 degrees.  what the.  so, it looks like it is going to be hot this saturday.  not sure if that means that there will be more people or less out riding with us.  what is does mean though, is that i don’t have to spend and extra 10 minutes getting dressed in the morning putting on vest/jacket, arm warmers, booty covers, full fingered gloves etc, etc, etc.  we have lots of things coming up for spr in the next month and some good opportunities to show other what we are all about.

so i am back after watching the worlds best compete in geelong, but unfortunately for me, i didn’t absorb any skill or ability by just being there.  actually, as i was shown this morning, i have lost form due to over a week off the bike.  the photo opportunities were great and the atmosphere was awesome.  unfortunately, i ended up recording some moto gp racing as the telecast changed channels halfway through.  so even though i was there, i haven’t even seen the race.

spr memberships – the online system is still down.  there is a paper method that can still be used.  more info can be found here.  if you need a licence to be able to race the team time trial or golden spokes, then this will be your only option.  if you want to wait, then the online system should be up and running…eventually.

dirt crits – take 1 mountain bike, 1 short dirt course, quite a few riders with lights at night and let them loose.  should be good.  there is a series of these races coming up over summer.  more info can be found here.  this is also an opportunity for us to pull our finger out and get the spr mtb affiliation active.

state team time trial –the teams have pretty much been sorted out for this event.  registration must be done before this tuesday evening so any last minute changes will need to be sorted out over the weekend.  more info can be found here.

golden spokes– ok, we now have enough volunteers, but if you want to help you still can, just let us know.  this event also has a bit of something for everyone.  a cycling wa road race, a cyclo-style team time trial (3 or more riders) and a participation ride.  i am pretty sure that the teams and participation events do not need a full racing licence and you can get insurance on the day.  therefore, if you aren’t racing or volunteering you can still come down and enter the participation events and show you spr colours.  we will post more details about the event registration soon.

ride routes – the saturday fast/main route is a pretty complex one.  make sure that you all know the route (not just the ride leader).  if you have a gps, it wouldn’t hurt to upload the route beforehand.  sunday, we are going to split the groups early, with the short course tackling kahuna rather than brookton hwy.  there is then an option for that group to go straight to coffee or also ride up mundaringweir road.  the long course is up for a leg smasher.  we did this route a month or so back and it was brutal. 🙂

saturday 9th october – all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

juniors – spr saturday 22.11km juniors (mt pleasant)

development group – spr saturday 35.48km (novice shelley)

transitional – spr saturday 40.72km (mosman park)

fast, main 1 & 2 – spr saturday 48.67km (cresswell & herdsman)

sunday 10th october – all rides start at coode st carpark at 7:00am

short – spr sunday 70.93km (kahuna)

long – spr sunday 101.29km (roleystone & observatory)